Chương 476: Chapter 476: Dong Ge, We're Waiting for You in the Finals
...The match officially began.
Starting line-ups:
F Country Men's Basketball: Batum, Pietrus, Diaw, Fournier, Jackson
XB Men's Basketball: Marc Gasol, Pau Gasol, Ibaka, Calderon, Rubio
With the Gasol brothers and Ibaka, the XB Men's Basketball team had a significant advantage in the paint compared to the BZ Men's Basketball team. This lineup was particularly effective in containing the Huaxia Men's Basketball team.
In this year's World Cup, from the perspective of Huaxia fans, only two teams posed a threat to the Huaxia Men's Basketball team: the M Country Men's Basketball team and the XB Men's Basketball team. Unfortunately, Yao Ming had retired... If Yao Ming were still on the team, he could have teamed up with Wade Dong to dominate the XB Men's Basketball team.
However, the course of the match defied everyone's expectations.
Both teams were known for their aggressive defence, but after two minutes of play, the XB Men's Basketball team had yet to score, while the F Country Men's Basketball team took a 3-point lead thanks to a three-pointer from Diaw.
Many F Country fans were also in attendance.
In the first half, the XB Men's Basketball team struggled from beyond the arc, missing several three-point attempts. Meanwhile, the F Country Men's Basketball team maintained a close score by relying on their three-point shooting.
The second half commenced.
The XB Men's Basketball team's outside shooting remained off-target, and they could only score through mid-range jumpers from the Gasol brothers. The F Country Men's Basketball team gradually pulled away.
With one minute remaining, the XB Men's Basketball team trailed by 10 points, making a comeback nearly impossible.
As Calderon missed a three-point attempt, Fournier grabbed the defensive rebound, forcing the XB Men's Basketball team to foul and send Fournier to the free-throw line.
Swish!!
Swish!!
Fournier made both free throws, essentially sealing the game.
Many fans in the arena could not control their emotions and started crying.
Beep!!
The final whistle blew, and the match ended.
F Country Men's Basketball stunned XB Men's Basketball with a score of 65-52, advancing to the semi-finals.
After the match, the F Country Men's Basketball team celebrated together, making the defeated XB Men's Basketball team look even more dejected.
...
"Nan Ge, you were right. Our next opponent is the F Country Men's Basketball team."
"Hahaha... I didn't expect this outcome either."
"The F Country Men's Basketball team won't be easy to beat!"
Wade Dong spoke in a low voice, "In this match, the F Country Men's Basketball team's defensive intensity even surpassed that of the NBA playoffs. The reason why the XB Men's Basketball team struggled from the outside is largely due to the defensive intensity of F Country."
"I noticed that too."
Huang Yu nodded, "Up to this point, we haven't faced a team with such high defensive intensity. Most of us will struggle to adapt in the match after tomorrow."
"We can't afford to be careless. They're a very strong team."
After reminding his teammates, Wade Dong stood up, ready to leave the arena with his teammates.
"Coach Deng."
F Country Men's Basketball head coach Collet called out to Coach Deng, "I'm glad we get to face off against you."
"Congratulations on making the semi-finals. Your defence was excellent tonight."
Coach Deng acknowledged the performance of the F Country Men's Basketball team, then added, "But even with this level of defensive intensity, it won't be enough to stop our Wade Dong."
Wade Dong, "???"
Damn, was Coach Deng trying to stir up trouble for himself?
Collet, "We'll see about that!"
...
With the quarter-finals over, the semi-final matchups were set.
September 12: M Country Men's Basketball vs. LT Men's Basketball
September 13: Huaxia Men's Basketball vs. F Country Men's Basketball
Up to this point, only two teams remained undefeated: the Huaxia Men's Basketball team and the M Country Men's Basketball team.
The various statistical leaderboards continued to update.
Scoring Leaders:
Wade Dong: 37 points
Barrià: 22 points
Blatche: 21.2 points
Rebound Leaders:
Wade Dong: 10.8 rebounds
Haddadi: 9.4 rebounds
Blatche: 6.4 rebounds
Assist Leaders:
Wade Dong: 7.6 assists
Kapanen: 5.8 assists
Rubio: 5.1 assists
Steal Leaders:
Rubio: 3.6 steals
Wade Dong: 2.4 steals
Harden: 2.1 steals
Block Leaders:
Wade Dong: 5.6 blocks
Ibaka: 3.6 blocks
Haddadi: 3.4 blocks
...
This statistical leaderboard didn't hold much authority.
One reason was that many players had returned home to their mothers after the group stage, so their statistics remained frozen at the group stage level but continued to appear on the leaderboards.
Another reason was that some national teams relied heavily on a single star player, and the strength of their opponents varied greatly. When facing weaker teams, their statistics would surge, as evidenced by the fact that almost no players from the M Country Men's Basketball team appeared on the leaderboards. This was because the players on this team had relatively similar overall abilities, resulting in more evenly distributed playing time.
Of course, there were also some statistical anomalies, like the player who occupied the top spot in four out of the five leaderboards.
Wade Dong's average points per game were significantly higher than the second-place player because he had two games where he scored over 50 points: 57 points against the HG Men's Basketball team and 53 points against the BZ Men's Basketball team.
...
September 12.
The M Country Men's Basketball team defeated the LT Men's Basketball team 96-68, becoming the first team to advance to the finals.
September 13.
At 3 a.m. Beijing time, the Huaxia Men's Basketball team's semi-final match against the F Country Men's Basketball team was about to begin.
The entire M Country Men's Basketball team was present to watch the Huaxia Men's Basketball team's match... After defeating the XB Men's Basketball team, the F Country Men's Basketball team was at their peak morale.
However, no one believed that the F Country Men's Basketball team could beat Huaxia. Their star player was Batum, who ranked several dozen places below Huang Yu in the NBA.
"Dong Ge, we're waiting for you in the finals!"
Before the match, Curry and Thompson sat on the sidelines with popcorn, cheering for Wade Dong.
Starting Line-ups:
Huaxia Men's Basketball: Wade Dong, Huang Yu, Lin Hao, Yi Nan, Gu Qi
F Country Men's Basketball: Batum, Pietrus, Diaw, Fournier, Kazadi
Beep!!
The referee's whistle sounded, and the match began.
The Huaxia team got the first possession, with Lin Hao dribbling into the frontcourt. The F Country Men's Basketball team's defence was intense, so Lin Hao passed the ball to Huang Yu, who missed the shot.
Pietrus grabbed the defensive rebound.
The F Country Men's Basketball team attacked, with Fournier driving into the paint and making a fadeaway jumper!
2-0!!!
The F Country Men's Basketball team scored first.
"Ah!"
After scoring, Fournier roared and quickly returned to defence.
Coach Deng tightened the lid on his thermos, "Dong Ge was right. Everyone is struggling to adapt to F Country's defensive intensity."
"Keep an eye on Wade Dong and don't let him receive the ball!"
Collet also stood on the sidelines, reminding his players that whether or not Wade Dong had the ball, he remained the biggest threat to the F Country Men's Basketball team.
Lin Hao tried to pass the ball to Wade Dong several times but couldn't find a suitable opportunity. Finally, the ball ended up in Yi Nan's hands, who turned around and shot over Diaw, but missed!
Batum grabbed the ball and quickly initiated a fast break.
Noticing Wade Dong rushing over, Batum passed the ball to Fournier behind him.
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